Sunday, June 29, 2008

Panasonic’s Viera product launch was a roaring success last Wednesday, and I can’t tell you enough how pleased I am that Jay and I were a part of that success.

Throughout the event, things were happening at a frenetic pace. I was genuinely surprised to meet Ms. Amy Perez and her husband (Who apparently isn’t Brix Ferraris anymore. I must’ve missed the memo.), and there was quite a huge reaction to Jay’s routine, considering how powerful his finale was.

After doing a table set and a quick stage set, Jay and I capped our two-man act off by “unveiling” the new Panasonic Viera, which, needless to say, is a work of art.

Pictured here is myself and of course, my partner, Jay Mata, the host Amy Perez, her husband, and a bent fork…

It was the first time I encountered the famous Lou Hilario, pretty much the number one magician for children’s parties, bar none. As he put it, if your parents don’t get Lou Hilario for you on their birthday, they don’t love you. Lol.

Sir Lou’s routine was definitely eye-popping and incredibly amazing. He has a repertoire that never fails to catch the attention of the kids, and even the adults have their moments of fun, particularly when he made some political jokes, where he asked a parrot wearing a GMA mask to resign… I was laughing my head off, to say the least.

Having said that, other than his comment about the fact that I was not especially dressed up for my table set (He commented that the new generation of magicians don’t seem too keen on dressing up.), he paid me a compliment when he mentioned that if Balloon Creations was getting me, then I must be good. That was quite a shot in the arm for me, to say the least. I’ve never seen Mr. Hilario perform before, so watching a master at work really made me stop and stare, knowing full well that I was watching perfection.

Sir Bing, my mentor, was always singing Mr. Hilario’s praises when it came to magic. He practically worships the ground Mr. Hilario walks on when it comes to that, and I can see why.

.:Amusingly Enough…:.

Thanks to my walkaround set at the party despite the storm last Sunday, I ended up performing for a table where there were organizers from ICA who needed a host for their variety show and their prom.

Needless to say, I was floored when they asked me to do the honors. I almost blurted out that I’d gladly do the show for free, and anyone who reads my blog often enough would know exactly why I was just overjoyed over this prospect.

This is definitely exciting news, to say the least. It’s like I died and went to the promised land. ICA! ZOMG!!!

.:PW II:.

Jay Mata and I were at the TSC gathering last Saturday, and we performed the routine known only as PW II. It got a huge laugh from the people, and I just have to say that it was but a sample of the irreverent, zany humor that you can get from Kel and Jay.

So Jay went up there and asked someone to name a single digit number, and TJ, the volunteer, promptly said 13, well after Jay wrote his prediction. He was screwed, since he only wrote one digit.

That’s when Jay put the white board in front of him, and began to perform PW II, to a chorus of laughs.

Saturday, June 28, 2008

I will post about it in more depth, but for now, just to let you know what you guys missed...

1. The event was hosted by able guy PJ and yours truly.

2. There was rickrolling.

3. My magic act was a hit, much thanks to two people in particular... Shari and doubly so, Kring.

4. Shari Punk'd all of us... including the clients. Apparently, she was well and fine after the finale of my act, but she fooled everyone, myself included, into thinking something went horribly wrong with her... gah! =p

.:I Can Has Videos!:.

Courtesy of Azrael, this is the video of my performance of "Lady And The Rope" for Charmelle of the 26K girls from "Deal Or No Deal".

With all the hooplasurroundingDanvilPlans, I can’t help but remember my harrowing experience with them some time back, and it saddens me that after all these years, they still haven’t changed.

A few years back, I was still with my first girlfriend, and we went to Megamall on a date. The plan was to watch a movie, and by some stroke of luck, we actually wore matching outfits. Now, I can assure you that wearing the same outfit was definitely not going to be necessary for Danvil Plans (Then Family First, of course. I was in college at the time.) to harass you with their “prizes”, but that was the excuse they had for bugging my ex and I.

I didn’t like it, and felt it was going to be a waste of time. Let’s face it: if I wanted insurance, I’ll effing get it myself (Which is precisely how people normally do it anyways.). I didn’t need to bake myself in a room being convinced to plunk down money into an insurance policy when I was out on a date, for crying out loud.

But the ex was enticed by the “free movie tickets” that would supposedly come at the end of the “short” talk. Since she was insistent, I said okay, give it twenty minutes tops, then leave and ask for the tickets. Sounds easy enough, but I underestimated the ability of Danvil Plans to destroy an otherwise fun, cool date. If I were less… wholesome, I’d say that Danvil Plans/Family First would be the ultimate cockblockers, but let’s not go there.

So there she went with this agent, who took her to the 5th floor, and talked to her about what Family First could do for the ex, and because she’s the paragon of niceness, my ex decided to let the agent finish her pitch, which ended three hours later, amid violent reactions from me just outside the office, as I was motioning to the ex that she should already get out of there because if we were going to be catching any movies at all, we better catch it before Christmas time comes around again and bears us the gifts of MMFF movies. Yes, I’m trying to be funny. No, I’m not laughing, either. Just thinking about this again ticks me off already.

We wasted three hours, and the ex was clearly mad at me for insisting that she’d step out as soon as she could, completely forgetting that we were out on a date. Furthermore, what disturbed me was the sympathy the ex felt for the agent, who apparently told some sob story about how she needs to close this deal to feed her family because she’s the breadwinner. Given the violent reactions other employees of Danvil Plans have given us in other blogs, I’m inclined to believe that either these people responding to the blogs are lying, or this agent in particular was. You can’t be “filthy rich” and “need” to close one measly deal at the same time. Either way, somebody is lying.

Was there anything illegal with this experience I had, where I was cockblocked deprived of spending a day with my erstwhile girlfriend? Of course not. I couldn’t sue them even if I had the best lawyers on my side. The ex came on her own free will, and was easily cowed into submission to listen to a three-hour pitch and even feel sympathetic for the agent afterwards. But knowing that everyone in this planet knows that Filipinos in general are very non-confrontative people, don’t you think people who prey on that fact are just being a tad unethical?

Not everything that is legal is ethical. That much is clear. Danvil/Family First/Whatever its name is now can be completely free of any legal liabilities, but not everyone who follows every single law can safely boast that they sleep soundly at night. When we take advantage of the natural magnanimity of people around us, when we exploit their lack of assertiveness, when we manipulate their emotions, and most especially when we resort to logical fallacies to sell our stuff, don’t you think we’re crossing an ethical line? The fact that you have families to feed does not add anything to the insurance you are selling, whatsoever. Your condescending attitude towards potential clients (A.K.A. sourgraping.) may not be enough grounds for libel, but I sure as Hades don’t think that your haughty attitude is good.

Even I cringed when arguably the best magician in the Philippines, Lou Hilario, told the kids he was doing magic for, “if your parents don’t invite Tito Lou for your birthday party, your parents don’t love you!” It was a funny line, but it exploited the emotions of kids so that parents could be cowed into booking Lou Hilario. Don’t get me wrong: sir Lou is an awesome performer, but I really wish he didn’t say that line.

But for a company to be built off the backs of agents who pull a stunt like that all the time? That’s just unbelievably sad.

By the way, I moderate comments. This blog is not a democracy. So if I’m gonna have idiotic commenters who don’t know the first thing about me and question my economic standing (Oh, and I’m insured already, thank you very much.), or my intelligence (Cum Laude in ADMU, baby.), or my looks (Ad hominem rocks!), then unless it’s funny and happens to be written in horrible English, it won’t see the light of day.

P.S. I don't even remember anymore if we even got the "free tickets" at the end of the day... le sigh.

P.P.S. The irony of a cockblocking company being named Family FIRST isn't lost on me, either...

I bonded last Saturday with Cami, if only for a couple of hours. It was fun talking about our strange lovelives (Or the lack of it, in her case.), and I’m just thankful that after all has been said and done, we still get along really well, considering all the zany stuff we end up going over when we’re around each other.

I’d just really want to take this opportunity to thank Cami for being a great friend to me. I’ve been going through a lot lately, and it does the heart good to know that I can count on her in a pinch.

.:Everything's A Mess...:.

Since you left, things have been going crazy. For the first time in two years, I do feel I'm in this alone.

I really can't help but feel the crunch now. It's as if everything I've done, everything I've worked for, was thrown away in an instant all because apparently, despite being busier than I ever have been in my life, I still seem to find "opportunities" to be a cad. This is just ricockulous, and I'm not standing for it anymore.

Chris Jericho’s gripping and entertainingly-written book “A Lion’s Tale” was a purchase I made because I was hankering for a good helping of a good wrestler biography. The fact of the matter is, when I looked in Fully Booked to see what was good to get, I realized that there wasn’t much left in the way of good wrestling books. You couldn’t find Eric Bischoff, or Mick Foley’s sequels, and there was a disgusting surplus of Batista’s book, which just made me retch.

I thought about getting a 5x5 Rubik’s cube for a while, but changed my mind when Charo let me try hers and I fumbled at it horribly. I think I’ll stick to the 3x3 cubes for now, then…

Having said that, reading Chris Jericho’s autobiography was a lot of fun. His humor style was exceedingly catchy, not to mention the fact that he had so many interesting stories, and a clearly sympathetic stance towards Chris Benoit in the book, highlighted by him saying that “the Chris Benoit I knew was not the one who killed his wife and kid before killing himself.”

To say that the book was a great read is an understatement. Chris Jericho is a phenomenal wrestler who has traveled from Mexico to Germany to Japan to the United States, hailed from the Hart Dungeon, and is the first-ever Undisputed Champion in the history of the WWE, having won both the WWE and WCW championships off of The Rock and Stonecold Steve Austin on the same night. Chris Jericho has pretty much done it all, and it’s all about the love for the business that he exudes whenever he talks about his odyssey into the WWE in what appears to be the first of a pair or trilogy of books about the storied life of Chris Jericho.

If you like wrestling, this is one of the must-read books in the burgeoning ranks of wrestler bio/autobiographies.

Monday, June 23, 2008

It was a night of celebration, and I still can’t wipe this silly grin off my face.

Last Friday night, Radio Partners got together for a small party, where I ended up meeting a lot of people from our sister stations from WAVE to Magic to MAX to JAM. With myself, sir Jimmy, Zack, Jaybee, sir Joe Spinner, and the Triggerman representing Campus, we all really had a good time, including a quick foray into my PK and escapology experiences which just really went over well.

From movies to lovelives to Tony Tony’s 48-day abstinence challenge, it was a riot all throughout the night, not to mention the fact that the Kare-Kare was absolutely to die for, as you can taste every bit of the delectable morsel with every bite, just completely overwhelming your senses.

Much thanks to Jaybee for giving me some… encouragement of sorts with the stuff we’ve been talking about. I really wouldn’t want it any other way.

Nights like these remind me why I love being in radio, and why radio will never quite die.

.:Tricks Of The Trade:.

I cannot thank Joe Spinner enough for taking me under his wing and teaching me the ropes, as I try to unlearn some nasty habits I picked up from being shunted to the graveyard shift with no guidance for two years in WAVE, not to mention being ridiculed on my last day by a certain other jock who shall remain nameless, effectively telling me “good riddance” on air on my way out. A real class act.

After my last day with WAVE, I honestly felt I was done with radio last July 2007. I gave three years of my blood, sweat, and tears, and all I got was some cheap jokes at my expense on the way out. Campus changed that, and I’m striving to make myself worth something, and finding myself on wikipedia for the first time in my life sorta gave me a much-needed ego boost.

While my diction of course needed working on, it was the sheer ability to ad lib on the spot that sir Joe really wanted to work on with me. He wanted me to unlearn the phobia I had of speaking up and overrunning the show’s anchor, and at some point, he even did the call signs in unison with me, which may not mean much to anyone, but is a big deal to me.

This is in spite of the fact that I still mix up song titles and artists sometimes, or outright forget one of the two, like when I talked about how cool “Paraluman” by Emily was, despite the fact that the song is entitled “Emily” and it was sung by Paraluman. This is in spite of the fact that I’m still unlearning three years of bad habits that have no place in professional radio, and that I barely stifled the urge to say the Mike Enriquez-ish “Excuse me po!” When I had to clear my throat.

I’m still far from becoming the super-ultra-DJ I always dreamed I could be, but it’s a more achievable dream than becoming a pro wrestler, at least, and I’m making strides in my drive to achieve it. For that, I can never thank Campus enough, knowing full well that every criticism they have leveled in my direction has never been anything beyond impetus for me to continue trying to improve myself.

.:Celebrity Funnies...:.

Since it's actually Iya Villana's birthday today, and since Gracey from Campus Aircheck was invited to the party, Cat(Also from Aircheck.) and I figured that it would be funny if we twisted Gracey's arm into finagling extra invites, and after much prodding, we almost actually succeeded!

I don't know if I can last this week, missing my Beloved so terribly. There's just something about this whole thing that really makes me feel so affected, and I can't help but wish that she came back already.

I do miss her so much, and I know I keep going around in circles talking about it, but what can I do? It's taking so much out of me just trying to understand why things are this crazy...

I've been hanging out with friends lately, and everywhere I go, I end up thinking how nice it would be if I were there with my Beloved, like this one I just had dinner in at Bonifacio High Street a while ago... the Carabao milkshakes were to die for!

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

It was a product launch for Panasonic, as Jay and I performed our two-man act onstage for the very first time.

I just got home, and it was a huge success! I'm a bit bushed, and I really need to rest, but I guess I just wanted to get the initial rush out of my system already. It was quite an awesome debut for Kel and Jay, not to mention the fact that our act was well-received all throughout.

I'll go into more details in the Magikel blog next time, but for now, let me just revel in a job well done...

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Initially, I wanted to post my support for journalist Ces Drilon, who was kidnapped by the Abu Sayyaf. While I of course am hoping that Ces Drilon gets out of this in one piece (As well as the other two captives, for that matter.), what Dominique told me about this so-called "Filipino Caste System" made me think that in all likelihood, we'll be seeing Ces Drilon back, alive and well, sooner than later.

Regardless, I do hope she'd return alive and well.

.:Backblogging?:.

Well, not by much, really. Being back on air does make me feel pretty normal and all, though. Sir Joe Spinner has been an excellent mentor, and we do get along marvelously well, for the most part. Due to quite a burst of gigs that came my way (Unexpectedly at that!), I actually treated him to lunch at Italianni's, and we stuffed ourselves silly.

Having said that, I'm still doing what I can, trying to improve bit by bit, day by day. I'm still on air everyday, from 9-12 noon, only on the number one hit music station in Metro Manila, Campus 99.5.

.:Suddenly...:.

... I found myself booked again! And on such short notice!

I'll tell you more about it next time...

.:New Linkage...:.

Added to my blogroll recently... Just Jokes! Sometimes, a bit of humor can really go a long way...

I've been meaning to take my show outside of Manila lately... thankfully, there's an affordable hotel in Davao City. Needless to say, I'm looking to taking the show over there. Soon.

.:Azrael's Last Dance? Say It Ain't So!!!:.

As Jay Mata and I went to wow the people in attendance at the 7th ToyCon in Megatrade for the second straight day, the feeling of impending doom was slowly permeating the atmosphere for the people who knew what was going to happen at the end of the day.

You see, despite the massively successful 2 days for the ToyCon, after all has been said and done, this is, according to Azrael Coladilla, organizer of the ToyCon, going to be his last ToyCon.

Say it ain't so, Az!

The Philippine Toy Convention is one of the biggest, most anticipated events in the country, bar none. People of all ages come together to celebrate their inner child in time with the event, not to mention the sheer energy as creative juices rush among the cosplayers who compete both in the individual and group categories. To say that people will sorely miss Az's presence if ToyCon 2009 happens without him would be an understatement.

My personal experience with Azrael has been nothing but pleasant. Since the 6th ToyCon, I've been a regular fixture in the ToyCons as a street magician (There was a Christmas ToyCon in between the 6th and 7th.), where I plied my craft on the ToyCon crowd, who are nothing if not appreciative of the entertainment. This is where I debuted the famous Blindfolded Rubik's Solve: an effect that from its initial performance I have mastered and been capable of doing nearly anytime, anywhere.

Personally, I owe much of my current success in magic and mentalism to Azrael giving me the opportunity to perform at his event. From having one of my earlier experiences for performing onstage in a convention to the sheer challenge of performing street magic for all sorts of people, and even to giving my contact number to potential clients including Alaska, Azrael's help has been invaluable to me, and during the 7th ToyCon, to my partner as well, Jay Mata.

Azrael, thank you for being one of the biggest supporters of not only toys, but cosplayers and even street magicians, bar none. You have no idea how much your contributions meant to us, and how sorely they will be missed. Regardless of that, however, we are still honored by your labor of love, and if this was indeed your last dance with the ToyCon, then you went out in a blaze of glory.

Sunday, June 15, 2008

For the past two years, it was almost clockwork that I would end my day speaking to my Beloved. I'd call her on the phone, and we'd talk until we were sleepy, say our prayers, and then go to sleep.

Now that she's in the States for a month, I can't tell you enough how empty it feels to not have someone to talk to before going to sleep, to not have someone I could pray with, to not have someone I could love and call my own.

It's not the same without her in my life. There's this really wide gap that makes no sense unless it's filled. She, more than anyone else I've ever known or loved, is someone I simply cannot eradicate from my life. In all the relationships I've been in, this is the only one that feels completely inextricable... something that would last me the rest of my life, for better or for worse.

Moments like these, I feel the compunction to approach people I shouldn't even think of approaching anymore... people who wouldn't provide me any good company at all, let alone something that could fill the void left by my Beloved.

I guess this is really all just crazy right now. It still hasn't sunk in that Rowena just left me with nary a warning... I really don't know what to say. I miss her terribly, and I haven't felt this lonely since, well, ever.

I didn't get to stay too long for the ToyCon yesterday, and neither did Jay, but that was because we had to prepare more lengthily for today's run, which will definitely be punctuated by some incredible feats, to say the least.

This is the last day for the ToyCon, and if Azrael is serious about what he's saying, there won't be another ToyCon organized by him next year. As a show of support for the guy, Jay Mata and I will be doing some snazzy stuff at the ToyCon today. Expect nothing but topnotch magic, mentalism, and comedy from the topnotch duo of Kel and Jay.

.:Nissan Grand Livina Vida Loca!:.

Campus 99.5 and Nissan had me as their entertainer for two of the Nissan showrooms in Manila, and it was an amazing time, indeed.

Representing the station, I performed my stage act for the people in attendance, and they were certainly pleased, to say the least. I did my routine twice for two different venues, making it a total of three shows I've done in the span of one day. It was exhausting, but it was definitely well worth it to see the great reactions from the audiences, who especially found the shackles bit very amusing, not to mention the Liquid Metal stuff, which is still getting awesome responses all around.

I went from U.N. Avenue to J. Abad Santos in record time, thanks to the fact that my shows were spaced just a bit under two hours apart, and I needed to perform for about an hour per show, so that just made things even more hectic. I even threw in some value-added entertainment for the J. Abad Santos venue later on, because I was waiting for Jay Mata to show up so I could let them see him perform, and they were impressed, to say the least. There's also something to be said about the Blindfolded Drive, and how Jay is probably the best guy I know who can do it.

.:Hangin' Out:.

TSC was the place to be afterwards, and swapping stories with the guys was fun. Rocky Racoon proved his usefulness for me the past day, and I definitely got big laughs from the jokes that just write themselves...

Friday, June 13, 2008

Today's show with Joe Spinner was loaded with excitement as our moods swung in time with the NBA Finals. Pro-Lakers Joe was uppity for the first three quarters, and then I started becoming all smiles during the fourth quarter, where Boston pulled a miraculous run that saw them win the game with a 6-point lead against LA despite being behind by double digits going into the fourth quarter.

'Twas all good, and a short visit to WAVE and RX proved to be rejuvenating, not to mention a quick rendezvous with my Beloved really completed my day. My thesis seems to be on track, as well.

Thursday, June 12, 2008

Looking at my schedule at Campus, wherein I find out that I'm on air Mondays to Fridays, from 9 to 12 noon with Joe Spinner here on Campus 99.5, I noticed something very odd...

... no, it's not just the fact that I've been officially rechristened as "Sparky" on the air. It's...

I dunno about you, but I just find being called "Joe's Sparky" being really, really weird...

.:NOT Love On The Locks...:.

In the spirit of Independence Day, before going to the station, I wanted to get my feet wet at actually learning how to pick locks. It seemed like a good idea at the time, really...

And for the most part, I thought so, too. I was doing a decent job, and with one hand, free, it seemed like a good escape so far, so after a bit of fiddling around and with a broken pick to show for it, I decided to reach for the key...

... except, ermm, there was no key.

There I was, the budding escapologist, trying to escape from handcuffs, and only half-successful. Worse, I had to go to work with one of my hands still cuffed, and it was only a matter of time before people would notice it. Hades, even people at next-door station, Magic 89.9, noticed. And they had Dr. Belo as their guest. Not the most brilliant first impression ever. The cuffs led to the obvious "kinky" gags by Mojo Jojo, especially when he found out the keys were with another guy...

So I walked into the booth, and John Hendrix was still handling hosting duties while Joe Spinner was trying to prepare some stuff. When sir Joe finally got on board, he started asking about the conspicuous white pillow sheet I placed on my right hand. Soon enough, I showed it to him, and the "keep it locked here" jokes commenced on air. We collectively had a ton of lock or key or some other similar pun throughout our ad libs, and despite bloopers galore, we had a pretty interesting show.

(Though none of the bloopers were as bad as sir Joe's "How about a *BRAND OMITTED* Meal on me? As in physically on me?" quip, or my "And that's Evidence with 'Urbandub,'", despite actually introducing "The Fight Is Over"...)

What made the show even more interesting was when my partner, Jay Mata, told me he had the key with him (How it ended up with him, I'll never know. And no, get your minds out of the gutter.), somehow, I managed to ask MM, an Airchecker, if she'd like to be handcuffed for a while until Jay got to the station. So for the next hour and a half, I was handcuffed to MM!

,

Yes, we boarded with cuffs.

So yeah, it was quite a fun-filled experience, to say the least (And not to worry, I cleared this with My Beloved, lest I encounter her fury.=P), so MM and I were a package deal for about an hour and a half, as sir Joe would introduce himself as "Joe Spinner with Sparky with MM... whether MM likes it or not." The other Aircheckers in the booth like Jiff and Tabel were worried if either of us had to go to the washroom, and thankfully, that issue never came up.

Sir Joe even figured that we could make a series out of this, where we'd get celebrity guests handcuffed to me and ask them *really* tough questions and they can never walk out on us, since they're cuffed to me. I even took the time out to interview MM in between songs, making sure that I wouldn't have to worry about anyone waiting for me outside the station after the show was over.

I was even teasing her that Jay got a flat, or that he dropped the key on the way, and you could see that she was adamant on still going to class in UST with me cuffed to her than simply not attend class at all. Ah, yes. The quintessential model student...

Soon enough, Jay Mata arrived, and after one last look at the handcuffed tandem...

... we finally took the keys and unlocked the handcuffs, thereby celebrating Independence Day in a very unique way. Nothing like a bonda... err... bonding session to start off your morning. She left shortly after the show, but it was all good, nonetheless. I think I made a new good friend with that hour and a half long adventure.

Afterwards, I had lunch with someone from Aircheck Batch 3, Lee (Sir Joe and sir John were busy.), and it was interesting, all the same. Genki girls rock. Heh.

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

I ended up not going to Campus today, simply because I felt too sick to get out of bed. I think my bed itself is also misshapen, which results in my bad back, all the same.

Having said that, I guess I needed to take this day off. I'm so exhausted after having had next to no sleep over the past couple of weeks, thanks to my extremely busy schedule which saw me in Taytay then La Union in a span of 24 hours. After all that stuff, and the fact that I had little sleep to work with, you can surely understand why I ended up getting sick... not to mention the fact that the wonky weather and the uber-cold air conditioning in Campus would certainly take its toll on me.

I'm trying to spend this day just getting myself back into gear. I'm really feeling the crunch, but I'll just keep on keeping on.

Monday, June 09, 2008

My Beloved dropped by my house last Friday, taking me completely by surprise, to say the least. After a week's worth of woes, headaches and various other mishaps, the sheer surprise I felt over being dropped in on when I least expected it simply made everything all better.

Just having the opportunity to spend time with her and hug her really turned my week around. I was tired, cranky, and ultimately, going through a lot of stress. Thanks to my Beloved, though, I managed to make it through the week despite all the stuff flying in my face, getting my spirits down somewhat.

Having said that, I'm really just in a haze the past few days. I feel so lethargic, and I can hardly really write anything, despite the fact that last week's pair of shows were extremely interesting, to say the least, and they definitely helped fund me this semester, as I had to pay quite a hefty tuition since I not only am doing my Thesis, but I'm also keen on taking Fr. Bulatao for Audit...

Truth be told, it's just really a load of fun for me lately as I've been trying to get back into the groove of things as far as going on air happens to be. Campus 99.5 has been a really fun place to hang out in, and everything's been falling into place slowly but surely.

The past weekend saw us Aircheckers take part in a seminar on ad libbing, as all of us were assigned to prepare three ad libs that we could use for the assembly at hand. There were memorable moments left and right when it came to that, considering how hilarious it was to hear our respective bloopers, moments of insight, and weird choice of words.

As usual, I ended up introducing Rick Astley during my time to ad lib, as I am wont to do. Given how jokes of calling me "Rick Sparky" have been running around lately, well there.

.:Baranggific:.

There remains much to be said about the craziness that transpired during our on-air forays, including the tasteless Rudy Fernandez jokes (God rest his soul.), but it appears that whenever we come up with a corny joke here at Campus, the coined term for it is that it's a "Baranggific" joke, such as the David Cook jokes by John Hendrix, as well as the new tandem of Zack Attack with Matt of Aircheck, who will come to be known as Matt Atat. =P

So come April Fool's will we have I-Sparky and I-Stroberi? Makintab. Matamis. Yeba!

As I go along, it may be quite a difficult road for me, but I'm certainly happy at the pace I see myself headed in, truth be told. Opening for Campus Redux a couple of weeks ago really saw me gaining a lot of confidence, and now that I'm going on air every 9-12NN with sir Joe Spinner on a daily basis, I can definitely say that it's really an awesome and exciting time for me.

Nothing spells "ho-yay" better than two grown men asking each other about curtains. =P

Having said that, Jay Mata and I accrued quite a few important items recently for our shows, including handcuffs. Of course, I have a few extra uses for the handcuffs though... hehehe. We spent the whole day trying to find stuff in 168, and it all went well, although we really couldn't find any contact juggling balls, and the traffic jam en route to Divisoria was unbearable. We couldn't stomach running over the hundreds of pedestrians who decided that streets weren't meant for cars.

Monday, June 02, 2008

I don't know what to say, so please give me license to be extremely sappy for you today...

I miss you so much, and I hope you do well in your board exams. I love you soooooo much!!!

No Doubt...by MisterVader

No matter how I look at this, no matter what I sayI'm just grateful you're in my life to this dayAt times I ask myself where we go from hereBut that I want to be with you is crystal clear

Call me sappy, call me a fool for youWe know that this is what I know I can doAnd show you how much you mean to meThere's no doubt with whom my heart wants to be

My Beloved, these meager words may not be muchBut I love you with all my heart, and as suchThere's no doubt how my heart is yearningThis passion I have is still burning

.:A Serious Rickroll: Lyrically Speaking Scribbles, Part XI:.

Don't laugh. I mean every single word.

Never Gonna Give You Upby Rick Astley

We're no strangers to loveYou know the rules and so do I...

You and I have had our share of love and heartbreak, and while we're a little older and a little wiser, it's still our hearts on the line. You and I are no spring chicken to relationships, but that's also exactly why both of us have so much baggage to deal with when it comes to how we deal with each other...

A full commitment's what I'm thinking ofYou wouldn't get this from any other guy...

You can keep hurting me, but for as long as you ask me to stay, I will. I've given my heart to you, and there's no taking it back, as far as I'm concerned. I've given everything, and I hope you see that.

I just wanna tell you how I'm feelingGotta make you understand...

Sometimes, in the heat of things, it's easy to take for granted how we feel about each other. Don't look past everything we've shared, and everything we've gone through. I want you to see how much this relationship has changed both of us for the better.

We've know each other for so longYour heart's been achingBut you're too shy to say it

It's been years, my Beloved. I know for the longest time, even in the middle of this one and a half years we've been together, you still hold back. You're still afraid to be hurt. Afraid that the circumstances surrounding us will prove to be insurmountable for us to work out.

It's all a state of mind. If you believe it, you know it will happen. Don't let me be in this alone, my Beloved. I believe in you. I believe in us.

Inside we both know whats been going onWe know the game and were gonna play it...

It's not a game, truth be told. It's about you and I finding a chance to share forever with each other. Whether or not we succeed, you and I will have given it our all because it was well worth the effort.

And if you ask me how I'm feelingDon't tell me you're too blind to see...

I wish you the best on your birthday. I give you my love, my loyalty, my affection, and everything else I could offer you. Thank you for having been a wonderful part of my life. I can't thank you enough for it, knowing all too well that you could very well be my once-in-a-lifetime.

Sometimes, you ask me why I'm still here with you despite everything. To that, I ask, why not? Is not the fact that I love you enough reason for you to know that I'm...

Never gonna give you upNever gonna let you downNever gonna run around and desert youNever gonna make you cryNever gonna say goodbyeNever gonna tell a lie and hurt you

I'm far from perfect, and maybe I've only fulfilled 80% of that chorus. But at the end of the day, you know that I love you with all my heart, and that in my own, simple way, this is how I wish to show you my love and affection. Call it corny or sappy or retarded, but it's straight from the heart, and you know that I mean it when I say that I love you.

Happy birthday, Rowena, my Beloved. I thank you for being a special part of my life, and I will keep on fighting for this relationship for as long as you want me to because you know you are worth it. I love you so much, and you mean everything to me.

This message goes out to one of the best singers I've ever met, my former student in RIS, Gaita.

All jokes aside, you were one of my most brilliant students ever, and I will always be happy with how you have come so far in my class, and hopefully, in life.

Thanks for being one of the few students I've had whom I can safely consider as a friend. I'm sorry I wasn't there at your farewell party to at least say goodbye, but not to worry, I'm sure my hypnotizing you isn't the last time we'd run into each other.

God bless you, Gaita, and do well in whatever you do. You're an amazing kid, and I have nothing but respect for you.

P.S. I can't even say "your head is dropping low, low, low" without making some reference to Flow Rida. I'm sure the cheesiness of it all snapped you out of your trance. Heh.

.:More Rick Astley Shenanigans...:.

Rickrolling is a science!

So I got to thinking about the impending arrival of Rick Astley on Philippine soil in just under two months. I wasn't joking when I said I wanted to watch... I'd definitely watch the concert if I had tickets, and there's a good chance I will.

Having said that, I also like how in an interview, he said he was mostly amused about Rickroll phenomenon, but he was just worried that it might embarrass his daughter, more than anything else.

With no sarcasm whatsoever, I have to say... what a class act! Instead of thinking about cashing in on the hype, he thinks more about his daughter's welfare, and doesn't really see himself as anything revolutionary or influential.

One thing he said that really struck me was this (Taken from his recent interview...

For his part, Astley was nothing if not modest about his new cultural role. “If this had happened around some kind of rock song, with a lyric that really meant something -- a Bruce Springsteen, "God bless America" ... or an anti-something kind of song, I could kind of understand that,” Astley said. “But for something as, and I don’t mean to belittle it, because I still think it’s a great pop song, but it’s a pop song; do you know what I mean? It doesn’t have any kind of weight behind it, as such. But maybe that’s the irony of it.”

With all of this buzz going over Rick Astley for the past year or so, and with all the Rickrolling going around, whether it be against Scientology or Fred Phelps, the Rickroll has become a harmless but kitsch form of, in the words of the interview, "geeky rebellion". The V masks donned by some Rickrollers does lend credence to this theory...

But there is a point to be made about this post, and it's this...

.:According To Reliable Sources...:.

... I have a passing resemblance to Rick Astley.

I don't know how to take this, whether to laugh or cry or just be excited about it, but dagnabit, people in Campus are actually calling me "Rick Sparky" when they realized how I looked like the guy...

But I can't just make these assertions now, can I? Looking through my old pictures, I tried to find a picture where Rick Astley and I are approximately in the same position...

You be the judge...

Since I gained a lot of weight in recent months, I looked for a picture when I was significantly thinner, and well, having Mick in the picture is just gravy.. Do I look like an 80's Pop Icon, or are people just saying that because of my inexplicable admiration for one Rick Astley?

.:Your Moment Of Zen...:.

Rickrolling, with a twist! Remember those trivia bits in the "Pop" music video for "Music and Lyrics"? Well, here you go!In case you can't see the vid, look up "Pop Up" and "Rick Astley" on Youtube. That'd help.

Sunday, June 01, 2008

Last year, I took part in Mangaholix, albeit unofficially. It was a great experience really, being able to do street magic and mentalism for the people in the convention and getting pretty good reactions. However, this year, I was officially tasked to perform walkaround for Mangaholix, and this time, I wasn't going alone... I was going to perform with my friend and partner, Jay Mata...

Suffice it to say that we made waves when we actually did perform. The audiences were definitely a joy to work with, but I think for our walkaround show, the whole Penn and Teller dynamic added a very powerful dimension to our performance, since they had to watch Jay as closely as they can, due to the fact that Jay didn't talk.

Well, initially, he did, but then we kinda caught on to the fact that Jay's finale, which is something you have to see to believe, was going to be more effective if he did it without saying a thing. So we kept it that way near the end of our walkaround run.

Mike Abundo even decided to capitalize on this fact and used the opportunity of heralding our performance to take pictures of the cosplayers we performed for afterwards. Guhh...

In any case, we met a lot of people there, and as luck would have it, an old friend turned up...

It was fun, really. Jay was really getting crowds with his part of the act, to the point that I was purely being a mouthpiece. Even Liquid Metal didn't come close to the kind of reactions he was getting from the audiences... Jay was just that plain hardcore, and being the Teller of the outfit was actually enhancing the impact of his performance...

Well, I know he was cut off from the picture, but here's a hint about what Jay was up to, in a picture involving Crissey and Tricia...

As you can tell, two cameras were trained on us at the same time...

It was especially fun seeing Crissey almost run away in fright over Jay's routine... heh.

Interestingly enough, thanks to Ian of Groundbreakers, we were actually there at the VIP area, where we ran into a good friend of mine, Alodia, whom I had some amusing photo opportunities with, replete with side comments from the bouncers at the event, who were the same guys from Redux in Eastwood last Friday...

Ah, yes. The infamous bent fork of doom.

Bound, but not gagged!

Ran into some other friends as well, such as Ranulf, Jesse, and even Ria from Talecraft. It was awesome because Mangaholix really drew quite a crowd that day, and it was nothing short of exhilarating that Jay and I managed to entertain a good chunk of the people there with our hijinks. This is only the beginning.

All in all, it was a great day for Jay and I, as this is pretty much the first time we performed as a tandem in public, and I must say, the future looks bright in that regard. We also got quite a laugh when I did the blindfolded rubik's after Jay's silent performance, and he started talking. The audience we performed for genuinely thought Jay was mute... heh.

Well, I couldn't find any images for when I was onstage, but I must say, Campus Redux was a huge success for the people of Campus 99.5, as people literally swarmed Eastwood Central Plaza on a Friday night, all hoping to catch a glimpse of the unbelievable lineup of artists made possible by the rebirth of the Campus:

Dice & K9!

Zelle!

Paraluman!

Southborder!

6 Cycle Mind!

Fuse!

Imago!

Spongecola!

Callalily!

and... Bamboo!!!

It was a big night for the Campus Air Force, and definitely more of the same for even us Aircheckers, who were all part of the festivities. Everyone was definitely excited about the event, and the sheer energy of the crowd all throughout the night was simply unbelievable. People were cheering from beginning to end, and yours truly even had the honor of opening for the program, as my mentalism routine became the front act for the bands.

From the Shanghai Shackles to Fiber Optics to Liquid Metal to Abnormal Lift to Plunge of Death, I managed to capture a bit of an audience, building up excitement for the rest of Redux as I hyped what was going to happen later that night in the middle of my patter. I even ran into some of my students from Reedley International School that day, and one of them was kind enough to be my guinea pig as I went and hypnotized her for the Abnormal Lift. Shanghai Shackles got some laughs, but Liquid Metal and Plunge of Death definitely got the best reactions overall.

It was amusing to note as well that the name "Sparky" was in full swing, as almost everyone that night refused to call me anything but "Sparky", even longtime friends like JayBee... there were some exceptions of course, like my godmother (Who was actually a client for the event.), who referred to me by my nickname, and some Brewsters who knew me as "Vader".

Anyways, my small segment was a success, and I was exceptionally grateful that Fuse even thanked me by name in the middle of their performance, after thanking John Hendrix, Triggerman, Jimmy Jam, and the other Aircheckers. Sir Jimmy reminded me that it was a magical segment in a Campus show, not a Magic show... heh.

Throughout the rest of the night, I was hanging out with my Aircheck batchmates, going around and talking to a few of the bands, going onstage when I had to, and even staying for a bit at my ninang's table for a while before I headed back to the backstage area. At some point when everyone was onstage, I was being goaded to dance, and Zack Attack proceeded to push me in that direction... it was nuts, I tell you. Considering I didn't really drink that night, it was just insane. =P

Went home after the party with a very big grin on my face, knowing full well that this is only the beginning for Campus 99.5.